Waterless urinal



Jan. 1Y0, 1967 E B. BLANKENSHIP v wA-TERLESS URINAL Original Filed Feb. l0, 1964 A T TORNE Y INVENTOR. IWW

ERNEST BA YNE BLANKE/vsH/P United States Patent Otice 3,297,858 WATERLESS URINAL vErnest Bayne Blankenship. Irving, Tex. 75060 Original application Feb. 10. 1964, Ser. No. 343,820,1:w Patent No. 3,251,070. Divided and this application Oct. 8, 1965, Ser. No. 494.101 1 Claim. (Cl. 219-519) This is a division of application Serial No. 343,820, filed Februarv 10, 1964, now Patent No. 3,251,070.

This invention relates to incinerator type urinals for use in locations where water supplies are limited, such as on railroad trains, airplanes and buses, on farms or camp sites, or at other places where sewer connections are impossible or impractical. The incinerator urinal of the invention is in some respects related to the incinerator toilet invented by me and Harry A. Bowers shown and described in Patent No. 3,020,559, dated February 13, 1962.

The invention contemplates an incinerator type urinal which includes a casing having an enclosed compartment in the lower portion thereof and having an upstanding bowl, open on one side, above said compartment, the bowl having a downwardly sloping bottom of inverted cone shape forming the top of said compartment and having a short drain tube connected to the bottom of the bowl and forming a downward extension thereof, an insulated enclosed combustion chamber in the lower portion of said compartment in spaced apart relation to the walls thereof, the combustion chamber being electrically heated and having a restricted opening in the top thereof surrounding said drain tube, said opening communicating with the interior of said compartment surrounding the combustion chamber and having the lower end portion of said drain tube received therein, in radially spaced relation thereto, and a vent pipe having a blower therein connected to the top of the combustion chamber and arranged to exhaust combustion gases, vapors, fumes and odors therefrom. 1

The invention further contemplates an incinerator type urinal as described in which the combustion chamber has a short tubular member immediately surrounding said opening and extending upwardly a short distance above the top of the combustion chamber, the lower end portion of said drain tube terminating above the top of the combustion chamber and being received in the upper end portion of said last mentioned tubular member.

An object of the invention is to provide an arrangement as described in which the bowl is positioned a substantial distance above the combustion chamber and fluids collecting in the bowl are positively caused to flow by gravity in a conned stream as they are drained therefrom, while at the same time being forcibly drawn into the combustion chamber, along with any fluids which may collect in said compartment exteriorly of the combustion chamber, by differences in pressure above and below said opening.

An advantageous feature of the invention is that fluids, liquid or gaseous, which collect in the bowl are immediately and forcibly ejected therefrom, whereby they are disposed of, while at the same time the bowl remains thoroughly dry whereby corrosion is effectively reduced.

Another advantageous feature of the invention is that the bowl remains relatively cool at all times so that it may be used continuously as desired.

These and other objects will become apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view showing an incinerator type urinal embodying the invention as seen from the top, front, and an adjacent side thereof.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional elevational view taken on a median line.

FIGURE 3 is an electrical diagram.

3,297,858 Patented Jan. 10, 1957 The exemplary form of the invention shown in the drawing includes a casing 10 having an enclosed cornpartment 11 in the lower portion thereof and having an upstanding bowl 12, open on one side, above said compartment 11. The bowl 12 has a downwardly sloping bottom 13 of inverted cone shape forming the top of said compartment 11, and has a short drain tube 14 connected to the bottom 13 of the bowl 12 and forming a downward rextension thereof. An insulated, enclosed combustion chamber 15 is positioned in the lower portion of said compartment 11,in spaced apart relation to the walls thereof. The combustion chamber 15 is electrically heated by a heating element 16, and has a pan 17 therein for the accumulation of ash.

The combustion chamber 15 has a restricted opening 1S in the top thereof surrounding said drain tube 14. The opening 18 communicates with the interior of the compartment 11 surrounding the combustion chamber 15, and has the lower end portion of said drain tube 14 received therein, in radially spaced relation thereto. A Vent pipe 19 having a blower 20 therein is connected to the top of the combustion chamber 15 and is arranged to exhaust combustion gases, vapors, fumes and odors.

The combustion chamber 15 may have a short tubular member 21 immediately surrounding said opening 18 and extending upwardly a short distance above the top of the combustion chamber 15. As shown7 the lower end portion of said drain tube 14 terminates above the top of the combustion chamber 15 and is received in the upper end portion of said last mentioned tubular member 21, in radially spaced relation thereto.

The numeral 22 designates an oxidation catalyst which is provided in the combustion chamber 15 adjacent the vent pipe 19 to promote more eicient combustion and to reduce odors. A suitable catalyst for the purpose de* scribed is manufactured by Oxycat, Inc., Wayne, Pa. The interior of the bowl 12 advantageously may be coated with a material such as Teflon, manufactured by E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company., Wilmington, Delaware, to prevent materials from adhering thereto.

Referring now to FIGURE 3, contacts 23, 24 connect opposite ends of the heating element 1 6 with a source of power. The circuit making such connection includes a momentary switch 31 near the second contact 24, and which momentary switch is preferably a push button on top of the upstanding bowl 12. The coil 26 of a double pole holding relay 25 is also connected with the contacts 23, 24 and which connection includes the momentary switch 31. One of the contacts 2'7 of the relay 25 is connected in series with thermostats 29, 30 which are connected with the same end of the heater 16 as to the second source contact 24. The second contact 23 of the relay 25 is positioned, on the one hand, for contact with a circuit parallel with the heater 16 and including the blower 20. On the other hand, the second contact 28 lof the relay 25 is positioned for contact with a normally open thermostat 32 connected between the blower 20 and the second said source contact 24 through the relay contact 28. One of the two normally yclosed thermostats 30 opens at a higher temperature than the other 29 and thus serves as a safety switch, for example, in the event the relay contact 27 should weld. Closing the momentary switch 31 activates the heater 16 and at the same time energizes the coil 26 of the Iholding relay 25. The contact 27 of the relay 25 continues to supply current to the heater 16 after the momentary switch 31 is released through thermostats 29 and 30. At the same time the relay contact 28 completes the circuit to the blower 20. Sustained temperature from the heater 16 causes one of the normally closed thermostats 29 to open and which action releases the relay 25, but in the meantime the normally open thermostat 32 has closed and, through the relay contact 28, the current is supplied to the Iblower 20 after the heater 16 is de-activated. When the normally open thermostat 32 cools, that contact opens and cuts off current to the blower 20.

In operation, the bowl 12 is used in a conventional manner and iluids collecting therein are positively caused to flow `as they are drained therefrom, while at the same time being forcibly drawn into the combustion chamber 15, lalong with any iluids which may collect in the compartment 11 exteriorly of the combustion chamber 15, by differences in pressure above and below the opening `18. Any uids, liquid or gaseous, which may collect in the bowl 12 are immediately and forcibly ejected therefrom, whereby they are disposed of, while Iat the same time the bowl 12 remains thoroughly dry whereby corrosion thereof is effectively prevented.

The bowl 12 is positioned above the combustion chamber 15, in spaced apart relation thereto, :and is removed from the path of the combustion gases generated therein, whereby the bowl 12 remains relatively cool at all times and whereby vaporization of liquids therein is substantially avoided.-

The invention is not`lirnited to the exemplary construction herein shown and described but may be varied within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

In a waste disposal incinerator including an electric heater circuit having at least two contacts with a power source, a momentary switch in a circuit. connecting said power source with said heater circuit, a double pole holding relay also conected with said power source, vthe circuit of the coil of said holding relay including said momentary switch, said relay having rst and second contacts, at least one normally closed thermostat connected within said heater circuit on the side thereof including said momentary switch, said thermostat including means to be contacted by said rst contact -of said relay, a lblower connected with said source of power through said second contact of said relay, a normally open thermostat connected with the side of said blower including said relay, and means connecting said normally open thermostats with said source of power when said normally open thermostat is in its closed position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,594,158 7/1926 Else 219-519 2,777,934 1/1957 Falkenthal 219-519 2,898,433 8/1959 Felt 219-519 2,978,568 4/1961 Murphy 219-519 3,020,559 2/1962 Blankenship et al. 4-131 3,251,070 5/1966 Blankenship 4-131 RICHARD M. WOOD, Primary Examiner.

L. H. BENDER, Assistant Examiner. 

